US Forest Service Manti-La Sal National Forest

Snow, Weather and Avalanche Advisory

 Introduction:

Good Morning, this is Evan Stevens with the USFS Manti-La Sal Avalanche Center with your with your avalanche and mountain weather advisory for the Wasatch Plateau/Manti Skyline Region, including, but not limited to Ephraim, Huntington and Fairview Canyons. This advisory is brought to you through a partnership of Utah State Parks and the USFS. Today is Saturday, March 12th, 2005 at 7:30 am.

Current Conditions:

It seems as though spring has sprung a bit too much, but who is going to complain about warm, sunny weather, and consistent riding and skiing conditions. The trick right now to get supportable and fast snow is to be out early in the morning before the corn melts out to wet slush in the afternoon. At the highest and most northerly sheltered nooks and crannies you can still find a little bit of settled powder. All the roads and parking lots are in great shape.

Mammoth/Cottonwood SNOTEL: 44” of snow on the ground. The high temperature yesterday reached 62 degrees! Most of the day was above freezing.

Miller Flat Trailhead: There is 36” of snow on the ground.

Seeley Creek SNOTEL: There is 43” of snow on the ground. The high temperature yesterday reached 36 degrees at this SNOTEL stake.

Mountain Weather:

A weak and dry cold front should push through and put our temperatures to a more normal level.

Today...Mostly sunny in the morning then becoming partly cloudy. Breezy. Highs at 8000 feet in the upper 40s. West winds 15-25 mph.
Tonight...Breezy. Mostly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow showers. Colder. Lows at 8000 feet 15-20. North winds 15-25 mph.
Sunday...Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of snow showers. Colder. Highs at 8000 feet in the lower 30s.

Avalanche Conditions:

A few weeks of high pressure have really given the snowpack some time to settle out, and given all the riders a chance to track down untouched snow on most slopes. Although spring riding is great fun, I think it would be nice to see some new snow soon, since we do have a week and a half left of winter, officially. But for now, there are just 2 things on my mind when it comes to avalanche danger right now. First is the daytime heating of the snow, which will create loose and wet snow avalanches by mid-day. This is the season to plan your trips to be off of and away from the steep and sunny slopes as the day warms up. The second issue on my mind is the danger of a large cornice failing. With the high temperatures we have been having, any one of the major cornices could easily fail, especially with the additional weight of a snow machine. Generally, I avoid cornices as much as I can-there is no reason to be walking a plank out there! What this all adds up to is an avalanche danger of LOW on most slopes and aspects, rising to MODERATE on steep and sunny slopes, especially below 10,000’ as the day heats up. Remember your rules for spring time riding-pin wheels, cinnamon rolls and sinking in past your ankles are all signs of the snow loosing its strength, and are clues for you to head down into the valley and fire up the barbeque.